Governor calls lawmakers to Santa Fe on Monday for special session

ALBUQUERQUE >> After weeks of uncertainty and complaints from businesses, New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez late Friday officially called a special session on a $295 million public works package and other proposals that died on the Legislature's last day.

Martinez sent out a proclamation that calls for lawmakers to report to Santa Fe at noon Monday in an attempt to pass a capital outlay bill.

The announcement comes after months of political posturing and repeated requests from business groups and mayors from around the state who wanted lawmakers to forge a compromise on a bill that pays for roads, parks and other public projects.

The governor's office said the pending agreement from the special session could increase funding for senior centers and higher education institutions around the state. In addition, the deal also calls for highway projects to be financed through a combination of state general funds and severance tax bonds.

Lawmakers failed to pass the measures in March amid last-minute public bickering during a session where the GOP-controlled House and the Democratic-led Senate found little common ground.

At times, contentious bills resulted in hours of testimony in one chamber only for them to end up languishing or getting blocked in a committee. Those included measures to ban late-term abortions and require parental notification before a minor ends a pregnancy, as well as a measure to end the state's practice of issuing driver's licenses to people in the country illegally.

It's unclear if lawmakers during the special session will take up proposals that didn't pass but appear to have widespread support but languished amid the infighting. Those proposals included reform of mental health treatment and legislation addressing ride-booking services such as Uber and Lyft.

Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, a Democrat, said the session will hopefully last only a day.

The cost to reconvene lawmakers for a day could be lower than the $50,000 spent on previous special sessions, officials said.